Prey_984
Legacy Name: Prey_984

Background

Nothing, just darkness. Just the smell of old wounds and dried blood lingering in the air. Nothing, just silence. Just the taste of rotting flesh lingering on my tongue and between my teeth. There is nothing, nothing, just the four walls that have kept me in the darkness for the majority of my life.

This darkness is all I've ever known; there are only flashes of light. I remember the first flash of light; everything else seems to blur together. I was very little, very weak and fragile. I remember being in some kind of stadium that resembled a circular arena, with stands that faded into more darkness. The lights blinded me as a whimper escaped my lips. I felt so vulnerable as I hunched up in the middle of the pit. I closed my eyes for a moment, and then, and then, pain. Pain beyond anything you could imagine. Something, or someone, tore at my fragile body, hurting my flesh and breaking my bones. As I curled up on the ground, unable to move, there was a roar of triumph from the crowd. Even through my pain, I could hear them laughing at me. Laughing at my weakness, Laughing at my pain. I felt myself being dragged back to the darkness; the gate closed with a thud and the silence once again engulfed me. I tried to lick my wounds and I eventually curled up into a ball to die. But I didn't. I couldn't. I didn't know who or what I was. All I knew was that I had to fight to survive.

In the beginning, I was angry; angry at the darkness that surrounded me, angry at the gods who made me this way, angry at my fate. My anger took hold of me. When there was those moments of light, my vision would turn red and I would unleash my anger upon whatever pathetic beast was set upon me. The more I fought, the stronger I got. I learned very quickly how to fight. You had to if you wanted to survive. My feet moved swifter than any other beast; my senses quicker and aim more accurate. I could tear flesh from bone more fiercely than any other, rip skin from muscle more painfully. I could incapacitate any opponent set against me. It is what this life taught me to do; it is all I know.

As time stretched on the flashes of light became less frequent, and my time in the darkness lengthened. My body stayed immobile for longer periods of time. I was better at what I did than any other creature, of that I was sure of. No wild, dumb, beast was as capable as I was. I finally knew that this was what I was born to do.

The screech of the gate opening brought life to my body. I lifted my head as the light hit my face and as the roar of the crowd interrupted my silence. The adrenaline rushed through my body as I stood on my four feet and shook out my matted fur. The gate shuddered to a halt high above me, just as I bared my teeth and let loose a deafening roar. This is what I lived for. This is my life.